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User blog:Geographer/I Would Like to Be A Geographer
When I was small, I enjoyed listening to weather forecasts and locating capital cities of different countries on the world map, but it was not until Form 2 did I begin to realise what geography is. During one geography lesson, our teacher talked about the adaptive features of camels to survive under very harsh conditions. Normally, animals are analysed during biology lessons, so I felt so astonished that I went to ask the teacher why he was talking about camels. Then, he explained that geography covers every element on Earth, and camels are of course no exception. This inspired me to look further into what geography is. In short, it is the study of all the structures on Earth, including both the natural environment and the human society. Then, I realised that my early interests were all related to geography, although it is far more complex than what I first thought of it. For example, geographers do not just want to know what the weather is at a certain place, but they also focus on why there are such weather phenomena and how weather varies over a period of time. Key Geographical Methods and Skills I have acquired, as well as understood thoroughly, the different skills that should be possessed by a geographer. First of all, there are the generic skills of literacy, graphicacy, and numeracy. How do I put these skills in use in geography? First of all, I often read books that talk about different geographical topics. For example, I have understood more about the natural functioning of the Earth after reading The Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Earth and Weather. Also, watching documentary series like Human Planet and How Earth Made Us made me understand better how people modify then natural environment and form self-sustainable societies. In addition, I have been reading maps since a long time ago, so I definitely have no difficulties in interpreting them. At the same time, I have chosen to study statistics instead of algebra in my Mathematics elective part because I understand that statistical skills are necessary in many geographical topics like demographics. Moreover, in order to study different phenomena that take place on Earth systematically, geographers need to have a thorough understanding on each component of the research process. Recently, I have finished an assignment called the Independent Enquiry Studies (IES), which requires us to investigate into a social issue. During the course of the study, I have gone through the whole research process including setting up objectives, designing the research methodology, gathering information, analysing the data collected, and presenting my findings to other people. Now that I have a better understanding on what difficulties and limitations I may face in each step, I am more confident in carrying out researches on various geographical topics in the future. Furthermore, geographers often need to conduct fieldwork to collect first-hand information or evidences to support their studies. Although I have never formally participated in any geographical field trip before, thanks to my parents, I have travelled to quite a number of different countries. This has given me the chance to look at some other features of the Earth apart from the skyscrapers and busy streets full of people and vehicles that I see in Hong Kong every day. In 2010, my family and I went to Argentina, and we went to places such as the Iguazú Falls and the Perito Moreno Glacier. In 2011, we travelled to Chile, and we visited the Atacama Desert, which is the driest place on Earth. In the same trip, we also went to the Lake Region of Chile, where we had a walk through the bushes of a temperate rainforest. Visiting this place has taught me about the formation of different landforms, and it has also made me realise how wonderful our natural environment is. Also, I have learnt more about different cultures of the world as I have had a lot of opportunities to come into close contact with local realities while travelling. Not only have these experiences broadened my horizon, but they have also prepared me for studying geography. Last but not least, in order to have a taste on how studying geography in university is like, I stayed in the Department of Geography and Resource Management of Chinese University of Hong Kong for five days. Not only did I listen to lectures which cover both physical geography and human geography, I also joined a field trip, participated in a tutorial, and listened to student presentations. Also, I had the chance to visit different facilities in the Department (e.g. the Soils and Geomorphology Laboratory, the GIS and Remote Sensing Laboratory, the Landscape Laboratory, etc.) and observe how those facilities were used. After these five days, I undoubtedly had a more in-depth view into the subject. In the future, in order to understand more about the world that we are living in, I would like to learn how to use those new technologies such as Earth Observation (EO) and Geographical Information System (GIS), which can help us better monitor every phenomenon that takes place on Earth. Applying Geographical Knowledge As geography can provide us with knowledge about both the natural environment and the human society, it has wide applicability. I have come up with two major career paths in my mind, and I hope I can join one of them after finishing geography in university. First of all, I can use my geographical knowledge gained during university to research further into different contemporary issues. Of course, I may not be able to solve such big problems as global warming or political tensions between different countries, but at least I can act as an advisor to both the government and the private sector. For example, I can tell mining and oil companies from which part of the Earth they can obtain a large amount of raw materials and how they can extract those materials using sustainable ways that will not disrupt the natural cycle. Also, I can inform engineers of the natural hazards that may threaten the human society, so that they can plan some infrastructures accordingly. In addition, I can explain to them some natural barriers that may hinder the construction of certain structures. Apart from staying in the research frontier, I can also participate in jobs that have practical values. For instance, I can be an urban planner. It definitely requires professional geographical knowledge to arrange a city in a nice way. Residential areas and industrial areas cannot be placed too close to each other, or else the citizens may suffer from air pollution. However, residential areas and commercial areas should not be too far apart, so that people can travel to work more easily and carbon emission from vehicles can be reduced. Other than being an urban planner, I can also work in travel agents to plan sustainable travelling routes, which allow tourists to come into close contact with local realities but without upsetting the local environments. Last but not least, I can join green groups and educate the public about the importance of and the contributions made to us by the natural environment. Therefore, I hope that I can gain sufficient knowledge from both physical geography and human geography, so that I can have a better understanding on the natural environment and the human society respectively. Subsequently, I can propose measures that allow people to live harmoniously with the natural environment. Future of Geography As geography is very broad, geographers tend to get more and more specialised. Also, a lot of people, including geographers themselves, may forget about the core concepts of geography and why it is important for geography to maintain as a single discipline. Therefore, it is worried that geography may break into bits and eventually fuse into other disciplines. Before ending this essay, I shall reiterate the importance of geography by quoting a poster used by the History Society of my school. Here, geography is described as prerequisite in understanding history, so how important the former is! During President James A. Garfield’s time, several events such as the influx of European immigrants and the American Civil War took place. Therefore, it was important to acquire integrated geographical knowledge in order to understand how these events had changed the natural landscape of America as well as how the natural environment had contributed to these events. Having a thorough understanding on these topics allowed the president to formulate better policies to cope with the needs of the society. Therefore, it is important to maintain geography as a whole, as envisaged by the following diagram. The central part of the diagram represents the core part of geography, which includes concepts and methods from both physical geography and human geography. In the peripheral area of the diagram, the specialisms of geography are not forgotten. In fact, they serve the function of connecting geography to other disciplines. In order to interpret the Earth in a comprehensive way and maintain the unique value of geography, geographers cannot focus on either the natural environment or the human society, but they should focus on both, especially on the interrelationship between them. Inter-disciplinary collaboration is equally important as it allows integration of knowledge from other disciplines into geographical studies, which can surely enhance their objectiveness. Category:Geography Wiki